But the truth about Esther Hicks and Abraham is probably more obvious than obscure, with a quarter of a century to look back on for contradictions or inconsistencies, jumbled information and a peculiarly accelerating mania for selling workshops, cruises, books and associated products.

This souped up marking apparatus is now going beyond what skeptics previously thought possible, openly tooling up Jerry Hicks' cancer to goose ticket sales for DVDs, workshops and webcasts.

(And, no, they have never admitted that Jerry Hicks is being treated for leukemia. That admission would immediately prove that the core of what Esther Hicks has been preaching all along is false. Instead, the Esther Hicks Scam broadens.)

I've written several articles and participated in more forums than I can count in which the primary topic is Esther Hicks and Abraham. If there is a point of view I haven't heard or debated, I'd be surprised.

I have criticized flaws in Abraham's teachings and especially in Esther's evolving, frequently mean-spirited style, which lacks, not just empathy, but ordinary kindness. Nothing else I've written on any subject draws as much attention. Or hostility.

Esther, Jerry Hicks and the Abraham Hicks Scam: Facade Crumbles

I once wrote an article, Is Esther Hicks Faking? My conclusion, then, was that she wasn't. After recent developments, however, I've had to reverse my opinion.

Anyone reviewing the twenty-five year public history of Esther Hicks on stage, speaking the same message, evolved and honed, would have a hard time concluding that it was a gimmick. A performer with skills greater than Laurence Olivier might not be able to pull it off. Even stars in long running plays and televisions shows give it up sooner.

Holes were discovered in the overall fabric of Esther Hicks' Abraham "truths" when challenged by events like the World Trade Center disaster. Despite the obvious craziness of it, Esther Hicks, as Abraham, continued to insist that all deaths are voluntary. "No exceptions!" she announced.

Even more than in the past, marketing and sales messages saturated every step, more taking than giving in the lessons.

I realized that at least some of the "teachings" had to be bogus, inventions of Esther and Jerry Hicks, or their "eternal beings," Abraham, were either whacked or not very bright.

Then, starting in mid-2009, the presentations began to unravel and the spirit grew coarser. In depth studies, like those reported in the blog, Kyra Speaks, began finding holes in the Esther, Jerry Hicks and Abraham story that couldn't be glossed over.

Maybe you've heard of Seth or even Theo. Maybe Chief Joseph has crossed your path. All of these have human counterparts who claim they are conduits for another spiritual or nonphysical world. The say, in other words, that they do what Abraham does through Esther Hicks.

Esther, Jerry Hicks and Abraham were neither first nor original. (Some would argue they were the first with overt meanness and disdain for followers who don't snap instantly into line.)

The success Esther and, especially, Jerry Hicks had in promoting Abraham as well as the lack of critical scrutiny spawned an outburst of newcomers claiming to be channeled and ready to dispense wisdom.

Seth and Theo preceded Abraham and were instrumental in hooking them up with Esther and Jerry Hicks and providing models.

Success spawns imitators. Even when new channels are not involved, self-appointed teachers and law of attraction life coaches abound. There are even people who claim that they too channel the same Abraham that Esther does. Could there be a shortage of nonphysical entities, forcing some sharing.

Abraham, it is said, takes over Esther Hicks in a meditative state and delivers "blocks of thought" for interpretation. Why this causes an accent, a la Theo, is not explained, since Abraham tells audiences that there are no words of verbal communications in the spirit world.

Here are some basics:

• The central teaching from Abraham is that the "Law of Attraction" is the most powerful force in the universe. (Not that it describes the force; it is it, showing a specific ignorance of scientific principle.) Thought empowers vibrations that attract their equivalent. Thoughts force the universe to deliver the essence of what is being thought about. The more emotionally powerful the thought, even if ill-defined, the more more complete and quick is the delivery.

• Because most of us are unaware of the power inherent in our thoughts and emotions, we create realities by default. That is, the universe has no choice but to deliver, no matter how unintentional or careless your "thought vibrations." A fear of something, for example, has the ability to bring that fear into your life. As Esther and Jerry Hicks write in Ask and It Is Given, "You get what you think about, whether you want it or not."

• Acknowledging the confusing complexities most people must sort through, Abraham has suggested a number of implementing practices. In brief, they encourage "reaching for the next best thought," giving students step ladders to find their way up incrementally.

• Abraham teaches positive thinking and sustaining faith in results. Manifestations of desires that must arise in complex lives where other desires and conflicts compete can take time. Sorting out is a learning process. A lack of faith delays graduation.

• I recently read a law of attraction "expert" (There are many self-proclaimed.) insisting that, in order to achieve your desires, you must maintain an intense focus on them. This is not what Esther Hicks has said. Abraham has taught that the universe gets the message every time and will deliver every time, instantly. No need to think hard or to hold onto a thought deliberately. Allowing the delivery is your issue, so be careful what you wish for. You will get it, according to these teachings.

• "Life is supposed to be fun," is a motto derived from the teachings and embraced by Jerry and Esther Hicks and their followers. If you are struggling with the law of attraction in your life, relax, take a breath, and try to find the impulse that most motivates you. Be easy with it, as Esther has conveyed from Abraham. Struggle merely indicates that you are going in the wrong direction. Pick up you oars and let yourself float easily downstream.

• Finally, a practice of daily meditation is critical to success. Connecting with your inner self, Marianne Williamson has said, is as essential as taking a shower, and Esther, Jerry Hicks and Abraham agree. Meditation was the first thing Theo recommended to Esther and Jerry, and it was through meditation that Abraham was allowed to enter our lives.

Esther, Jerry Hicks and the Abraham Hicks Scam: Truths

The teachings coming from Esther Hicks and Abraham began simply, grew tangled and, finally, full of contradictions and perilously bad advice. (You don't need health insurance or doctors because, if you follow the teachings correctly, you will never be sick, a bit of "infinite wisdom" recently proved false when Jerry Hicks began treatments for leukemia.) But it's easy to see how this happens more visibly as the "teachings" meet reality and have to be justified.

The challenge of turning teachings into demonstrable results would be hard enough, but the bizarre nature of some of them (All deaths are suicides.) make the effort impossible.

As all smart religions eventually do, this one simply dismisses skeptics as failures who don't understand the teachings or are unable to practice them effectively. Esther, Jerry Hicks and Abraham rarely give interviews and, after making fools of themselves in a conversation with a British journalist, have stopped entirely. The questions remain unanswered, simply dismissed instead.

Dissenters and doubters are evicted from their workshops, and the tightly controlled official Abraham Hicks Forum quickly deletes threads deemed "off topic." (The main Abe Forum, managed by David Gordon who is compensated by Esther and Jerry Hicks for his efforts) has blocked me from even reading the discussions. Why would any conversation about "truths" need protection, I wonder.)

If you'd like to assess for yourself, read the core books, most importantly Ask and It Is Given, which I find to be one of the weirdest and least coherent books ever published. (You may see it completely differently, but that's what discovering truths is really about, isn't it?)

Avoid anything having to do with The Vortex, the books, the guided meditations, etc. That's all rehashed garbage heaped on the market with nothing new to say.

Once you get your basic information, anything else is just elaboration and sales.

I finished my first novel when I was twenty and kept going. These days, I write a lot online on many subjects. I sell freelance journalism and have six books done and in the market, two of them the kind of novels I always wanted to write, the rest full of surprises.